Rabbit Excessive Shedding

Question
My 9 year old rabbit Oreo has been shedding excessively for the last year or so.  I can basically brush and brush and gently pull clumps of hair off of him but it doesn't seem to get better.  They are black at the top and more gray closer to his skin.  Could this just be a sign of old age?  He was diagnosed with mites in the past, but even with the medication the shedding did not fully go away.  He doesn't seem to be in pain or have discomfort.  He is eating and behaving normally, but recently he starting to not use his litter box like he used to.  My husband thinks he is losing his vision now so unless the litter box smells enough for him to pick it up he will urinate outside of the litter box.  

Answer
Dear Tania,

You don't say what state his skin is in, but if it's flaking at all, he may have a case of fur mites.  This is easily and effectively treated with Revolution (selamectin) from your rabbit vet, and you can read more here:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/furloss.html

Some rabbits do shed continually, and changes in his physiology as he ages could contribute to some degree.  But I would get him to a good rabbit vet:

www.rabbit.org/vets/vets.html

for a full wellness check to be sure all systems are working well.  He may be losing his vision, but he may also be suffering from arthritis or urinary tract problems that are causing him enough discomfort to urinate outside the box.  Good analgesics are available if it's arthritis (metacam and tramadol can work miracles!), but proper diagnosis should be made first.

If he's having urinary tract problems, please read:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/urinary.html

Bottom line:  He needs the attention of a good rabbit vet to see what's going on on multiple fronts.  Hope this helps.

Dana